Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 1-3

Tocqueville opens with the <a data-internal-link data-link-type="Literary Device" href="https://www.supersummary.com/assertion/">assertion</a> that his French contemporaries have noted the growing popularity of equality over freedom and that he will explain how this comes about. Equality is particular to democracy; forms of freedom can exist in other systems, but equality cannot. Tocqueville also believes that the worst effects of equality are harder to perceive than its benefits. He states, “at the moment when they have become most violent, habit has already made them no longer felt” (480). The benefits of equality, in contrast, reach easily into most aspects of human activity. Europe experienced some social equality well before it had political freedom, which helped make the former more preferred. Tocqueville considers the love of equality virtually limitless, even if individuals prefer both: “they want equality in freedom, and, if they cannot get it, they still want it in slavery” (481). This echoes Tocqueville’s earlier concerns about the tyranny of the majority: Just as Americans are unconcerned about the suppression of minority voices, people in general will prefer equality to political freedom. Tocqueville is also critical of individualism, which he calls a focus on self and family so that an individual “willingly abandons society at large to itself […] it will finally be absorbed in selfishness” (482).

Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 1-3 Summary and Analysis: “Why Democratic Peoples Show a More Ardent and More Lasting Love for Equality Than for Freedom,” “On Individualism in Democratic Countries,” and “How Individualism Is Greater at the End of a Democratic Revolution Than in Any Other Period”

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About Democracy in America

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Democracy In America Summary and Study Guide

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Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Volume 1, Part 1, Introduction

Get ready to explore Democracy in America and its meaning. Our full analysis and study guide provides an even deeper dive with character analysis and quotes explained to help you discover the complexity and beauty of this book.

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 1, Introduction

Volume 1, Part 1, Chapters 1-2

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 1, Chapters 1-2

Volume 1, Part 1, Chapters 3-4

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 1, Chapters 3-4

Volume 1, Part 1, Chapter 5

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 1, Chapter 5

Volume 1, Part 1, Chapters 6-7

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 1, Chapters 6-7

Volume 1, Part 1, Chapter 8

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 1, Chapter 8

Volume 1, Part 2, Chapters 1-2

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 2, Chapters 1-2

Volume 1, Part 2, Chapters 3-4

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 2, Chapters 3-4

Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 5

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 5

Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 6

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 6

Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 7

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 7

Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 8

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 2, Chapter 8

Volume 1, Part 2, Chapters 9-10

Democracy in America Volume 1, Part 2, Chapters 9-10

Volume 2, Notice

Democracy in America Volume 2, Notice

Volume 2, Part 1: “Influence of Democracy on Intellectual Movement in the United States”

Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 1-2

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 1-2

Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 3-5

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 3-5

Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 6-8

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 6-8

Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 9-10

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 9-10

Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 11-12

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 11-12

Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 13-15

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 13-15

Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 16-19

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 16-19

Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 20-21

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 1, Chapters 20-21

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 1-3

Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 4-7

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 4-7

Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 8-12

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 8-12

Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 13-17

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 13-17

Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 18-20

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 18-20

Volume 2, Part 3: “Influence of Democracy on Mores Properly So-Called”

Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 1-4

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 1-4

Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 5-7

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 5-7

Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 8-12

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 8-12

Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 13-16

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 13-16

Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 17-20

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 17-20

Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 21-26

Democracy in America Volume 2, Part 3, Chapters 21-26

Volume 2, Part 4: “On the Influence That Democratic Ideas and Sentiments Exert on Political Society”

Democracy in America

Volume 2, Part 2, Chapters 1-3

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